


Three's a Crowd

by SonicoSenpai



Series: Just the Smut Please [12]
Category: Lamento -BEYOND THE VOID-
Genre: Accidental Sex, As consensual as this universe gets anyway, Canon Compliant, Catboys, Consensual, Drug Use, Jealousy, M/M, Multi, Oral Sex, Original Universe, Polyamory, Relationship Negotiation, Spoilers, Tenderness, Threesome - M/M/M, Well as canon compliant as I get, angsty sex, catnip, reluctant relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-20
Updated: 2020-01-26
Packaged: 2021-02-18 03:47:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21504673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SonicoSenpai/pseuds/SonicoSenpai
Summary: Another new work because of that stupid Kinktober prompt list. I have two chapters completed in this universe and I guess I am not quite finished with it.This work takes place in the original LBTV universe, and as you might expect, it poly-ships Rai x Konoe x Asato and details their negotiations.There are spoilers starting in the first chapter, just to be aware.Also, I am aware that while this is mostly canon-compliant, the idea that Rai and Asato would share Konoe is a little iffy. Just supposing they did...
Relationships: Asato/Konoe (Lamento), Asato/Konoe/Rai (Lamento), Asato/Rai (Lamento), Konoe/Rai (Lamento)
Series: Just the Smut Please [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1149473
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

So, this isn’t anything that I really planned. But I suppose when you are exhausted and imbibe in catnip, all sorts of surprising things can happen.

It’s after my confrontation with the demons, and my body is feeling exhausted but much less oppressed by the heavy curses that were engraved on my wrists and ankles. My fur has been restored to its usual color of white, tipped with brown, and I’m feeling less anxious.

At first, I wasn’t sure that the curse had been lifted at all. I was exhausted—after the devils and after meeting Leaks—but he kept me alive for some reason. Rai pointed out that if Leaks had wanted me dead, he would have killed me then. Obviously, there's some reason he kept me alive. Asato comforted me and took my arm, leading me away from the horrible place—that Field of Four Colors.

As we walked into the woods, we came across a small glade, and Rai suggested we rest. As tired as I am, I plopped down in the grass and immediately relaxed when a wonderful smell flooded my nose. Sort of minty and herbal, just a little sour—I rubbed my head in the sweet and sour smell.

Keep in mind, I’ve never seen or smelled catnip before—and that was what we’d come across. A small wild patch growing in the forest—which is weird, since it’s heavily regulated now.

“Konoe, are you all right?” Asato’s voice floated into my ear, and it sounds _really_ pleasant—sending a small shudder through my body.

“Oy,” I heard Rai’s grumpy voice echo. He sounded weirdly concerned—he’s always so calm and collected, even in the heat of battle. But now, I'm sure I don't mistake the worry in his voice. “Oy. Stupid cat, what’s the matter with you?”

Both the black and white cats knelt on either side of my body—and their bodies felt so warm. I reached up to my hands—touching their cheeks at the same time. Both of them bristled up their fur when I touched them, and I couldn’t keep a smile from my lips. It’s so cute! They are _both so_ cute! Like yin to the other's yang, and both looking at me in a heated way.

That’s where I find myself now: relaxed, feeling revived by the catnip, being the center of attention, and extremely attracted to the cats on either side of me.

“What is this?” Asato murmurs softly. His pupils are large, making his dark blue eyes look almost black. The dark eyes suit his olive skin, making his black hair and fur shiny in the low light.

“Damn it,” Rai curses, but his icy blue eye is dilated and dark, too—and I notice his fur is bristled as well, making his small ears look slightly more in proportion. He's awfully handsome, even when he scowls. “This is…”

“What?” I ask. I feel really nice. Like… weirdly relaxed and kind of turned on, too. I wonder if my erection is visible from where those two cats are sitting. Normally, I’d be embarrassed and ashamed of showing such an obvious sexual response but right now, I feel like I _want_ them to see, and I untie my apron and remove it.

“What are you doing?” Rai asks, but he is watching my hands and he can obviously see what I’m doing. My cock stiffens a little more when I feel his gaze on my groin.

“I’m very hot,” I try to explain, as I loosen my shirt from my pants and pull it off overhead. I hear Asato gasp—and again normally, I would be ashamed. I'd never strip any piece of clothing off in front of either of them, but I'm so uninhibited right now. Both of these cats are better built than me. But at this moment, I don’t mind the black cat staring at me so much. In fact, when he looks at me like that it sends a wave of desire through me that pools in my groin.

“Oy,” Rai says again, but he has lost the controlling sound in his voice. I lift up my foot and slip off one boot and then the other, letting them fall in the grass with a mischievous giggle. I'm relieved to see the marks on my ankle have vanished. Then, I pull at the hem of both of their shirts.

“You must be hot, too,” I suggest softly.

Wasting no time at all, Asato slips out of his vest, dropping his weapon to the side with a soft clunk. Rai is slightly more hesitant, but his hands wander up to the buckle at his cape when he sees Asato strip off his shirt, then turning his eye firmly on me.

“Are you all right?” He asks, once his cape is off his shoulders, leaning in a little and smoothing my hair out of my face. He strokes my ears and a loud purr escapes my mouth along with a helpless-sounding meow. His touch is surprisingly gentle—for as much of a tough guy he pretends to be. I see his nose twitch and his pupil blows wide again. “You know… I think… I think this is catnip. Are you all right with... this? Do you want to be touched?”

“It feels nice,” I purr softly. “It feels _really_ nice.” I push my head up against the palm of Rai’s hand and I hear Asato growl softly.

“What’s your deal?” Rai snarls at Asato, but even his usual grumpiness seems to have faded a bit. He barely gives Asato half a glance before he turns back to me and takes my lips. Again, it’s a gentle kiss—much to my surprise. Not hesitant at all, but gentle and seductive—almost as if he’s been planning to kiss me for some time. The experience behind his touch is evident, too. I know he must have kissed others before me, and it shows in his confidence. It’s _hot_ —and I squirm against him, trying to get my body closer.

I don’t really understand what is happening here between Rai, Asato, and myself. I just know that I need this kind of touch and I need it right now. Pleasure blurs across my conscious thoughts and any concern or embarrassment I’d usually be feeling, and I let myself float.

While Rai is kissing me and probably because he is kissing me, Asato growls louder still, and I grab his hand. The sound sticks in his throat, and I feel him pop my fingers into his mouth. His mouth is hot and wet—and his tongue is different than Rai’s. Rai’s is rougher in texture, and Asato’s feels smooth. My mind wanders a little, assuming it's because Rai has long, thick fur, and Asato's is short and silky. But having one cat kissing me, entangling his tongue with mine, and another cat sucking on my fingers is extremely arousing. I hardly know what to do with the attention.

An unexpected sexual-sounding sigh comes out of Rai, spilling into my mouth, and his hands trace my chest, encircling my nipples. Asato unties my pants and pulls them off my hips in a single swift movement, leaving me in my underwear in the grass. I gasp softly at being so suddenly exposed—but it’s more the cool temperature of the air than being stripped that is bothering me.

“Take off your shirt,” I whisper against Rai's lips—and he pulls away for a second to do as I’ve asked. I’m surprised at his compliance, quite frankly, but I don’t have time to consider this since Asato has lowered his mouth to mine now, and I am sighing into it as his tongue violently delves around inside. It's a different touch than Rai's, less restrained but equally arousing.

I hear fabric rustling on my right. Rai must be taking off his shirt. Asato’s body is warm and comforting, which is kind of a weird contrast to how fiercely he is kissing me. I suddenly feel hands on my groin again—I don’t know whose—and it sends an indulgent melting feeling up my back and into my tail. I purr loud and wet and moan softly, and I am turned to my side. I feel Rai’s hair sweeping down across my back—he is behind me, roughly licking my ears and stroking my butt.

When I feel two hands touching my crotch—even through my underwear—the two cats surrounding me growl low and deep.

“Stop,” I urge. “Just… for now. Just… let me have this.”

To my surprise, they do stop growling at each other, but each one is trying to arouse me more than the other. It seems to be a competition of sorts, and I’m feeling quite affected.

“Not so fast,” I urge Rai behind me, but my underwear is pulled down roughly and stripped off my legs. I can feel his cock pressing up behind me, and it should frighten me since I have not been touched like this before, but it feels strangely good. My back keeps arching up and my tail is bristled and lifted, almost as though my body wants him to touch me more. I think his hands are running through my tail and also stroking my ass, brushing over the top of my entrance lightly. His tongue won’t leave my ear, and I can hear him huffing and purring directly into it, making the soft downy fur deep inside ruffle.

Asato is breathing heavily into my mouth, nipping my lips and tongue as he kisses me. He is touching my chest and groping my cock—and he’s quite rough with me. Everything about how he touches me is less restrained than Rai—from how rough his hands are and how hard he grabs me, how much he bites me, and doesn’t take care to cover his fangs. It's not a bad feeling, though.

One of Rai’s fingers slips into my mouth, making Asato growl.

“Shut up, stupid cat,” Rai snarls back. “I want him to be comfortable.”

I lick Rai’s fingers as he pushes them into my mouth and spill lewd-sounding sighs from the corners of my lips, feeling his chin on my shoulder. Asato is pulling soft sighs from my mouth, too—despite his rough treatment of me. It doesn’t feel bad at all—it just feels urgent and a little more clumsy than Rai’s touch.

As my body is teased and aroused, a finger slips between my cheeks—and to my surprise, I don’t resist. In fact, my body simply relaxes and submits—and while it hurts just a little when he first pushes inside, it feels oddly welcome once he gets past the tight rim of muscle at my entrance. I can’t seem to stop thinking about the fingers caressing and stretching my entrance gently—and the ones still caressing my ass outside my body—as he presses around inside me.

It makes me harder and my dick drips, and Asato uses the added lubrication to make his stroking more smooth. While I’m lost in the enjoyment of the sensations—feeling one cat taking care of my front and the other behind, I notice another finger and then a third slipping in. Once there is more than one inside me, Rai spreads them apart inside of me, making me shiver suddenly when he drags them back out. It feels so good—and I sigh softly.

Then, I am moved. Asato pulls me up from the grass suddenly, keeping me on my knees. He kisses my mouth deeply and pulls my body up close to his. He also uses one of his hands to stroke my cock and his together at the same time. Feeling his cock—larger than mine, hot, firm, and dripping—pushing against my own is overwhelming, and I love the feeling.

Rai’s fingers slipped out of me when I was moved, but he is soon kneeling behind me, and he pulls me backward just a bit. He grabs the base of my tail and my hips, and then I feel him biting the nape of my neck and licking my cheek, trying to get me to turn my head. I also feel his cock—hot and hard—pushing against my entrance. As soon as he captures my lips, he starts pressing inside me, all the while Asato is stroking my cock.

A burst of sharp pain explodes in my lower half—but that pain soon melts into pleasure because of the hands on my body, toying with my tail and strongly stroking my cock. I feel tears at the corners of my eyes, but it feels overwhelming and good to have him advancing inside me, to be connected to him while Asato is in front of me. It sends an odd feeling through me, as though I don't have to choose between them, that maybe I am valuable enough to have them both.

Rai pulls me back onto his lap—and he must be sitting on his knees. His skin is warm and smooth—and he continues holding my hips firmly, letting me adjust with my back leaning against his chest. He kisses me more—I have to crane my neck to meet his lips, and saliva spills from the corner of my mouth. Asato licks it up right away and purrs, pushing his head against my shoulder as he continues stroking us together.

Then suddenly, Rai rocks his hips forward, and I don’t move much since Asato is in front of me. But the short movement makes me feel like the bottom of the forest has dropped out from underneath me, and I nearly wheeze with the pleasure that shoots through me.

Both cats bristle fully at the sounds I’m making—and Asato strengthens his grip, letting Rai thrust his hips up again. I am trapped between them—being pleasured between them—and I reach one hand up to Asato, wrapping it around his neck, and the other I reach behind me to touch Rai—his hair, his chest—and it’s not enough. Instead, I wave my tail frantically, searching out his and wrapping around its soft, silky warmth. And I let myself be taken—feeling pleasure fill my body, making my fingers and toes go numb, the tips of my ears, nose, and tail all tingling.

The sounds spilling from my mouth are indecent—and it’s apparently loud enough so that I can’t hear the two cats growling at each other—though even when I feel their growls vibrate my bones, it sends waves of pleasure through my body. Even if there is scary growling filling my ears, it arouses me, and Asato's and Rai's pace match and send me close to the point of no return.

Asato is getting very close to coming, I think—and he increases his pace and lowers his lips back to mine. For just a moment, the black cat reaches behind me and touches Rai. I think he strokes his hair and the fur on the top of his ears, and Rai doesn't pull away. It's a little surprising to see the touch is accepted and enjoyed rather than so firmly rejected. I can feel both sighing and purring, and Asato gasps when he climaxes—and that pulls me along with him.

White light flashes behind my eyelids and my mind goes numb with pleasure. I spill into Asato’s hand and against his cock, and my insides tighten up around Rai’s cock inside me.

As soon as I climax—my insides still pulsing around Rai inside me—his breath stutters and my neck is craned back again. He takes my lips and thrusts into me several more times—and I purr into his mouth as my own climax is extended by the feel of him inside me.

All the tension in my body fades away, and the exhaustion I was feeling earlier comes over me at once.

Rai catches me when I fall back against him—and he gently pulls out of me while he lays my body down on his cape. Asato is stroking my hair and my cheek, and he has an incredibly indulgent look on his face. I see his eyes move to Rai behind me, and for once, there is no hostility there.

“We need to get away from this patch of grass,” Rai’s voice seeps into my ear. But his body is pressed heavily against me, and I feel his tongue grooming my ears. He isn’t acting as if he wants to move anytime soon.

Asato lies down in front of me, cuddling me up against his chest. With Rai behind me, the combined heat of their bodies makes me forget I’m naked. Utter peace and contentment flow through my body.

“I’m good here,” I say softly, surprised at how husky and low my voice sounds. Rai’s tail is still entwined with mine, and Asato’s is wrapped loosely around my leg. All three of us purr contentedly.

“Well, if we stay here, don’t say I didn’t warn you,” Rai's voice echoes low and deep in my ear as he continues grooming me. I drift off to sleep without a care.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Konoe, Rai and Asato head to Bardo's inn. There's some stuff from the game here... and a little extra.
> 
> This is NSFW, but it's consensual. Especially for this universe.

As I walk up the staircase to the second floor, carrying the keys for our room and Rai’s dagger, I still can’t quite believe what I witnessed. The silver cat lost it—nearly lost his senses completely in rage—when he encountered Bardo, the inn’s owner. I thought perhaps this wasn’t his usual place to stay when in Ransen when we stayed here before we left for the shaman. I wonder why we wouldn’t have stayed at his usual place. Perhaps I will ask him later.

When I reach the second floor, I find the silver cat waiting there, his gaze fixed at a spot on the floor, and his fur has settled and his hair is no longer standing on end. I’ve never seen him so angry, and I know he finds me frustrating from time to time. I’m somewhat relieved, weirdly; as though I’m relieved to find he’s just a cat of flesh and blood like me… Although, after our strange experience with the catnip, I shouldn’t have any trouble believing that. I had no idea he had that sort of feeling in him, what with his calm exterior.

“Here. Yours,” I say, handing him back the dagger. He barely meets my gaze when he takes it. I wonder—is that a slight look of embarrassment on his face? Perhaps he’s ashamed he acted so childishly in front of the inn’s owner and me?

“So,” I say, hoping to get him to tell me what happened. “I’m surprised you stayed. You don’t like the owner very much, do you?”

Rai sighs heavily.

“You didn’t leave me with much choice. You’re a precious Sanga, after all, and now we know Leaks is after you. It would be a foolish choice to leave you here alone.”

“Asato will be here shortly,” I remind him.

“Like I said, it would be foolish to leave you here alone.”

I look up at Rai and he is glaring down at me. Honestly, it makes me feel a little foolish, but it seems strange that he’d refer to Asato as negligible—especially considering what we just did yesterday evening.

After the experience in the catnip, I slept soundly enough so I didn’t wake when I was moved. Rai and Asato (I’m not sure who carried me and I’m afraid to ask) moved me to a safe part of the woods and let me sleep till I woke up on my own the next morning. Both cats are pretending nothing happened—and that makes me feel embarrassed and awkward. I was pretty sure I'd feel like I need a bath when I woke, though weirdly, I was clean when I woke up—at least, I didn’t have cum on me from either cat. So someone must have wiped me down and cleaned me up. And I was dressed, thankfully.

On the walk back to Ransen, though I was feeling awkward and strange, Rai and Asato were speaking to me normally. Rai asked me exactly what happened when I met the devils, and he countered my story with his usual neutral-to-skeptical questions. 

I am feeling much better now that I don’t have the markings on my body, and it’s nice to look normal—rather than like some harbinger of death and destruction. Just as I’m about to ask Rai about sleeping arrangements, I bristle when I hear a knock at the window. It’s Asato. He followed us over the rooftops, most likely uncomfortable with the crowd. I open the window and he slides inside gracefully.

“What is he, a lizard?” Rai scoffs.

“Were you able to get a room, Konoe?” Asato asks, wisely ignoring Rai.

“Yes,” I reply. I was calling in the favor I did for Bardo during our last stay—when I reluctantly watched over the reception desk for a while so he could finish shopping. He didn’t leave me with much choice, of course, saying that I was welcome to lodge elsewhere if I didn’t want to do it. “But because of Antou, he’s pretty full. There are only two rooms. Which—?”

“I’ll stay with Konoe,” Asato says, interrupting me and bristling up his fur a little in Rai’s direction.

“So the slave will stay with the master?” Rai spits. 

“I won’t let you stay with him. You don’t treat him well.”

“It’s not your decision.”

“Shut up.”

“You sure have him well-trained. Are you sure you want to go through with the training to become a Sanga? You’ve got it in you to be an animal trainer.” Rai’s words are still spoken calmly, but sardonically. I don’t want to deal with these two. I mean—they were both touching me sexually—naked or mostly so—and therefore almost touching each other—only yesterday.

“Actually, I’m fine either way. How about you two room together?” I suggest, unable to keep my snarky tone in check.

“No way,” Asato growls.

“If that’s a joke, I’m not laughing.” Rai has his arms crossed in front of his chest. I sigh exasperatedly. I have no interest in dealing with their shit right now.

“Whatever you guys decide, I’m fine.” I put my hand on the closest door to open it, and my shoulder is grabbed.

“What?” I can’t keep the annoyance out of my voice.

“You’re staying in the same room as me.” It’s Rai. He’s being particularly persistent.

“Stop talking like everything you say is the way things are going to be,” I retort. I don’t really care either way, but I almost consider rooming with Asato just because Rai is being so bossy about it.

“I’m not going to argue about something so stupid. Don’t lump me with this servant.”

“… I’ll kill you.” Asato does not like this arrangement at all.

“Are you an idiot? We have Sanga and sword training. It would be more convenient to be in the same room.”

“… Oh. Yeah.” He has a point. I glance up at Asato who looks utterly heartbroken. “It’s not like I won’t see you. It’s just while we are here. You can visit whenever you like. And I will visit you, too.”

I watch with some disbelief as Rai stalks into the room before me.

“Don’t worry. It will be fine. He seems oddly particular about it,” I say, somewhat sheepishly. But what Rai said does make sense to me. I’m supposed to be training after all.

“I guess so,” Asato says, and he gives me a slight smile. I can feel his disappointment but I can’t really do anything different.

After checking in with Rai, who is caring for his sword, I mention I’m curious about the festival. 

“Would you like to go with me?” 

Rai looks up at me sharply.

“Leaks is after you.”

“I know, but my curse is gone. I can go around without attracting attention. I’m sure I’ll be fine. And like you said, if he wanted me dead, he would have killed me back there.”

Rai sighs.

“I’d like to finish caring for my sword. Can you wait a while?”

“I can ask Asato to come with me if you don’t want to go.” Yes, my suggestion is manipulative, but I want to see how he responds.

“Fine.” He stands up and gathers up his gear. I’m shocked. Does he really not want me to spend time alone with Asato? What the hell?

“You’re coming?”

“You invited me, didn’t you?”

“Um, yeah.”

“Then let’s go.” Of course, Rai leads the way—and I notice he rushes past Asato’s door on our way. I still knock, a little annoyed, to check if Asato would like to join us.

“I’m not so good with crowds,” Asato confesses.

“Okay. I just wanted to extend the invitation.”

When we head outside, Rai tells me Antou starts tomorrow. I’m amazed by all the cats crowding the street, all the vendors setting up their wares. More cats than I have ever seen line the streets. And I see so many booths and interesting arts and crafts. It’s fun to look. I realize I’ve lost the silver cat who was walking in front of me when I look up from a table filled with shiny, colorful toys. I can hear him scolding me now. I lower my ears and look around for him.

“What are you doing?” I hear a sharp voice in my ear. It makes me bristle my fur and my claws extend in surprise. Of course, it’s just Rai. “You really are a stupid cat. Come on.”

He grabs my arm and drags me through the street. I think he may really be angry with me at first—until I see he’s brought me to a food stand. To my surprise, he orders something—it looks like two steaming hot drinks—and he gives one to me.

I’m surprised, but I take it from his hand and try a sip. It’s delicious—not tea, as I was expecting. This is warm milk with something rich and sweet mixed in, and it’s lovely.

“Hot chocolate,” Rai says. “I liked it when I was a kid.”

I look down at his drink—and it’s obviously the same as mine. He probably _still_ likes it, if he ordered one for himself. But I don’t say anything and I try to keep a small smirk from my face.

“How is your body?”

His sudden question startles me—even more than him buying me the drink did. 

“Um… well, the curse is lifted so I feel much better…”

“That isn’t what I meant. I meant from yesterday. Are you sore?”

“Oh.” I can’t keep the blush from my cheeks. I’m embarrassed (and also surprised) he’s asking me about it. I did all that because of the catnip, I thought—but now, I’m not so sure. Is he actually being kind to me?

“It was your first time, wasn’t it?”

“Um, yes.”

“It can be uncomfortable when your body isn’t in heat. But catnip acts as a powerful aphrodisiac. Hopefully, it made you more relaxed. You’d be in more pain otherwise. You don’t seem to be limping.”

“Oh. No. I’m fine.” I’m not sure what else to say. I dare to glance up at his face for a moment—and he still hasn’t taken a sip of his hot chocolate. He’s looking at me awfully closely, and it sends a pulse of heat through my body—to think that he’s thinking about _that_. What he did with _me._ “Thank you for asking. Um, and for the drink. It’s good.”

“Hmph.” 

“You aren’t going to drink yours?” I ask, and he glares down at me suddenly.

“Let’s train. I want your skill to stabilize. Do you have the energy?”

I nod, thankful I brought my sword with me. Still drinking the hot drink—which cools quickly—I follow him down the street and behind the inn away from the city. There’s an empty field there—perfect for training.

He has me practice my song—and I can’t help thinking about how it felt when he touched me yesterday. I mean… I knew about sex. I know two males can have sex. But I didn’t know three cats could indulge at once or that it would feel that good—and so intimate. It seems to affect my song in a strange way. I worry about it, but Rai seems fine with the change.

We do a little sword training after that—with Rai nagging me about moving faster and aiming for vital points, keeping my eye on the battle and not getting distracted or frenzied. I am a little fascinated with how he moves—so practiced and strong—and so calm, like he is doing a dance instead of fighting. His hair and tail stream behind him and I find myself oddly intrigued. Maybe the thing that happened between us wasn’t just a fluke. In fact, I’m sure it isn’t. It’s possible the two cats wouldn’t have touched me at the same time if I hadn’t been under the influence of catnip… but it’s hard to tell if it’s just because of that. Though Rai is definitely looking at me differently.

When I’ve exhausted myself, or perhaps just before, we go back to the inn. The moon of shadow is in the sky, and I pass Asato’s door on the way to our room. I’m hesitant to knock, however, when I don’t hear anything. He must be tired and exhausted from his earlier injury. It’s better to let him sleep.

Somewhat awkwardly, I climb into bed and try to relax, grooming myself as I do. I feel Rai’s gaze on me as I do, though… and when I look up, I can’t help noticing that he grooms his long fur just as elegantly as he fights with a sword. My heart flutters a little, just thinking about it. But I try to ignore it, curling up in a blanket and pretending to sleep.

I do eventually sleep—but I’m woken sometime later. Rai is sitting up in bed, breathing raggedly.

“Are you all right?” I ask. It’s hard to make out his expression in the dim light.

“Did I wake you?”

“No. Does your eye hurt?”

“Um, it’s okay now. I just had a nightmare.”

“A nightmare?”

“About the day my eye was injured.” Something sounds slightly off about his voice, though.

I stand up from the bed and walk over to where he is sitting. He bristles up his fur just a little—his tail thumping impatiently on the bed.

“Does your eye hurt when you have that nightmare?”

“I’m fine. Just go to sleep.” But I am not convinced, so I sit down on the side of his bed. I almost expect him to push me away, but he doesn’t.

I place my hand between his ears—they are so soft and silky, full and lush. And my mind travels back to the field of catnip. It doesn’t seem that he has a fever, but he does feel a little warm.

I kneel up in the bed, straddling him—and a small gasp of surprise leaks from his lips—and I groom his ears gently and tenderly, in comfort. But I notice that my body isn’t acting as though what I’m doing is comforting at all. It’s getting rather exciting and I’m starting to think this was a mistake.

“Come here, stupid cat,” he says, his voice soft and husky. He moves me down onto his lap, pushing me against his hips—and I can feel his erection beneath his clothes. That alone sends a fresh flash of heat through my body, and I start to sweat. Then, I feel his tongue on my ear—grooming my fur—as though I was the one who had the nightmare. But he is purring now—as if touching me this way helps to calm him down.

It does—in a way—but his breath is picking up. I can hear his heartbeat through his shirt, and I feel his claws stroking me softly—running through my hair, tracing my back and then ever-so-hesitantly touching the waistband of my pants. After a moment’s hesitation, he slides his hand up under my shirt and touches my bare skin.

I can’t help myself, but a soft sigh of pleasure escapes my lips. It feels so good! I lean in a little further and grab two handfuls of his hair—easily as soft and silky as his fur. I’m purring, too—obnoxiously loud—but I realize I want to touch him more. I like the feel of him. He’s so warm.

Soon, his lips are on mine, pressing against mine more roughly than they did yesterday. When I allow his tongue into my mouth, I notice he tastes sweet. I purr and let my tongue entwine with his…

And then suddenly I realize there is no catnip here.

What am I doing? I can’t possibly do _that_ again—it will be painful! Didn’t Rai tell me it would hurt without the catnip? In some way, it was sort of painful, and I understand why when I feel the size of his erection beneath his clothes. Did that really fit inside me?!

I look down and take my mouth away from his, hesitating.

“What is it?”

“I-i… j-just…” I am stammering, unable to tell him what I’m afraid of. My ears are flat and my tail bristles, but it sways behind my body insistently.

“Are you scared?”

I jerk my chin up to look at him. Is he making fun of me? But he has the most indulgent look on his face that I have ever seen.

“I won’t hurt you.” His voice stays soft and low.

I swallow nervously.

“Don’t worry.”

He pulls me up to my knees and pulls my pants down—watching my face as he does. He toys with my waistband a little first—and he pulls both my pants and underwear down enough so my erection springs free. A soft meow escapes—possibly me protesting—but his touch feels exceedingly gentle.

With his free hand, he quickly undoes his own pants—just unbuttoning and unzipping the fly—and he pulls my shirt up and over my head, letting his hand slide down my chest and abdomen. Then, he pulls me up even closer to his body—pressing his erection against mine.

“Relax.”

I purr softly at first—but it quickly becomes overwhelming when his heat pushes up against mine. I’m utterly smitten by this cat—something so different in the dark of night, with his tender touch and gentleness—so unlike the grumpy arrogant cat I see during the day.

Is this really all right?

But I only wonder about that for a moment—and I quickly become overwhelmed as I become even more aroused. I’m so close to climax—almost able to come just because he is touching me—he _wants_ to touch me—and my hilt is gripped firmly, preventing my release.

“Patience, kitten. What have I told you about brash cats?”

I moan softly—my body is disappointed. But I quickly become excited once more, brought to the edge once again within only a few strokes.

“So eager. You’ll wait for me, won’t you?”

The words are whispered into my ear and followed by his tongue. His free hand is now stroking my tail firmly—I think it might be painful if I weren’t quite so aroused. I wonder for just a second… is this why he insisted on sharing a room with me?

The thought gets me so excited I’m about to come again—and I whisper his name in case he can’t tell. 

“Rai…”

My claws are drawn against his back, and I am trying to run them gently through the fur on his tail, but it won’t stay still. It’s swaying back and forth in the same rhythm he is using to push himself against me, and I end up scratching his back.

Soon, however, I lift up my chin, exposing my throat and letting my ear slip from his mouth. I want to kiss him—and he takes my lips hard, bruising them with his fangs. So sweet—and nothing comes more easily than feeling the muscle of his tongue against mine. In seconds, I am flooded with a sweet numbing sensation radiating from my groin and rushing into every part of my body, making me bristle with pleasure. I let out an unrestrained voice—almost a cry—when I spill into his hand.

His purr deepens and he growls softly, spilling against my stomach almost immediately. I feel his body relax against mine—and weirdly, that is almost as hot as my own climax. He feels so different—even his face is softer, his brow isn’t furrowed—and mostly, he doesn’t look angry. He looks… indulgent, tender, loving.

Loving?

Is that what is happening here? It seems whatever this is will affect the bonds between us. It feels good. And I want more.

But for now, I’m exhausted. I lie flat against his bed, not even realizing it’s his bed—and I feel a cloth against my stomach. It’s a little cold and I shrink back for a moment. But he looks up at me and purrs.

“Let me clean you up.”

I relax again and close my eyes—and within a few minutes, the cloth disappears and is replaced by his warm, smooth skin. He’s naked—and his body is pulled up close to mine. In fact, he pulls me from my back onto my stomach, so I have my ear pressed against his heart. The rhythm is calm now and his scent floods my nose. I feel a tender touch against my ear—damp and rough despite how carefully my fur is groomed.

I drift off into a peaceful sleep—as peaceful as the one I experienced just last night in the catnip.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slightly spoilerish if you haven't played the game.
> 
> The next morning, Rai takes Konoe out to gather information, and Asato tags along. They don't get very far before they meet up with a group they thought they were finished with.

When the moon of light floods in through the window the next morning, I wake feeling rested and content. Until that is, I realize where I am. I am not in my own bed. I’m in Rai’s. I blink several times, trying to remember how I got here.

Oh. His nightmare. I remember now—I climbed into his lap to groom his ears and comfort him and we ended up—

“Ouch!”

I protest strongly when my tail is stepped on. He’s horrible!

“Move your foot!”

“Like a country cat. That’s how you’re acting,” Rai says, moving his foot. “Sleep well?”

“Um, yeah,” I murmur quietly, taking my tail and grooming the tip. Part of me can’t believe I did something that _again_ with this arrogant cat—this cat who felt free to step on my tail before I was even entirely awake.

I glance up and Rai is putting on his boots, sitting on my bed. I’d better get ready, too. I climb out from under the blankets and realize I’m naked. I flush from the roots of my ears and figure I’d better calm down.

Peeking up at the tall, slender, silver cat once more, he is acting like nothing unusual or untoward happened between us last night. It irks me that he is so nonchalant and calm, though it doesn’t really surprise me. I keep my face turned down to hide my blush, noticing my clothes are neatly folded and have been relegated toward the end of the bed. He must have folded them for me while I slept…

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I say. I’m embarrassed and flustered and more than anything, I want to hide this from Rai. My tone conveys sort of a pouty attitude, though. I reach out and start pulling on my clothes quickly.

“What bad humor,” Rai says, somewhat flabbergasted at my attitude. “You’d think you’d wake up happy after having slept so soundly.”

Stunned that he'd refer to what we did so casually, I glare up at him, still embarrassed, despite my anger.

“What?” His arms are folded against his chest. “I certainly didn’t hear any complaints from you last night. In fact—”

“That’s enough!” I interrupt in haste, working my feet into my boots. “I _get_ it, okay?!”

“Why? I’m just surprised to see you like this now when you so obviously had no qualms about raising your voice in pleasure last night.”

I sigh exaggeratedly, trying to keep my frustration and irritation in check. If I had known he’d act like this the next morning, I never would have tried to comfort him! Well. Maybe that’s a lie. Because part of me knows he is telling the truth. I _did_ really enjoy myself.

“I just don’t have your bold nerves,” I say softly.

“Hmph,” Rai says. “Such a childish reaction.”

I feel his eyes on me and he’s watching my tail, which is swaying back and forth.

“You’re probably hungry. You must have worked up an appetite.”

 _Gods_! I gasp, flustered again but refrain from speaking a single word. Instead, I follow him downstairs to the dining room. He makes sure to heap piles of food on my plate, but he doesn’t eat anything himself. I catch his glare at Bardo, too. Would he really not eat anything that cat made? It’s really out of character for him, I think. What on earth could have happened between them?

The food is delicious—scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, juice—a hearty breakfast that sits well after an evening of… well, pleasure, I guess. I’m licking the grease from my fingers when Asato joins us, sitting on my other side. He looks a little off today.

“Good morning,” I say with a smile. “Did you sleep well?”

Asato turns to look at me—and his face is filled with pain. My breath is taken away by the expression in his eyes, but I see him try to smile, and it’s a pathetic attempt. I feel guilty. What if he heard Rai and me last night?

“What’s wrong?” I ask softly. Rai huffs slightly, sipping his tea on my other side.

“Nothing. I did sleep well.” Asato looks at me carefully. “Are you all right this morning?”

“Um, yeah. I slept really well—”

“He didn’t hurt you?”

“What?” I drop my fork at his question, embarrassed and blushing again at once. To my surprise, Rai catches my fork with his free hand before it reaches the floor. Jeez, that cat can move fast!

“Watch what you’re doing, stupid cat,” Rai mumbles.

Asato growls at Rai—who is sitting quite close to me.

“I’m going out to look for information today. You’re coming with me,” Rai announces.

“Stop bossing Konoe around!” Asato says, raising his voice.

Rai clicks his tongue and says, “We need information on Leaks and I have sources.”

“All right,” I say. “Asato, it’s all right. I’m fine. And to answer your question, _no_.”

“Well, I’m coming, too.”

I notice Rai gets up before Asato finishes his meal, and he pulls me out of my chair by my arm.

“Let’s go.”

He _is_ being really bossy! Is this because of last night, I wonder? It feels a little strange.

I shake off his hand and wait for Asato to follow us into the lobby. Bardo is waiting at the reception desk.

“How’d you sleep? Were the beds comfortable? The festival is really picking up—you should have a great time today.”

Rai ignores Bardo—acting rather childishly, in my opinion, when he pretends not to hear a single word. He pushes the door open and goes out to the street.

“Um, yes, thank you. It was comfortable,” I answer. I notice Asato doesn’t speak to Bardo, either.

“So _you’re_ the third guest. I’m Bardo, the owner. You know, it’s weird. I was at the reception desk all afternoon yesterday and I didn’t see you come in.”

“Oh, this is Asato,” I say, forgetting my manners.

“I came in through the window,” Asato says.

“The window?” Bardo asks, surprised.

“Yeah. Through the window.”

“I see. Well. I guess that works, too. Welcome and enjoy your stay. You should have fun at the festival.”

“Thank you,” I say and follow Rai out the door.

* * *

 **Rai** :

That stupid cat is needlessly worried about things that he can’t fix. Why would he care about the slave’s sulky manner? Of course, he’d be envious. I’m trying to settle my fur as I ignore the conversation between the tiger cat, the slave, and the kitten. If he weren’t a Sanga, I wouldn’t be forced to deal with any of this.

Sighing deeply to calm my nerves, I wonder about that. Am I being truly honest with myself?

It’s true I was incredibly annoyed at the slave’s reaction to the kitten this morning. He acted all hurt and wounded—I’m sure the kitten’s voice must have woken him last night. In his place, I suppose I’d feel envious. But if he truly cares for the kitten’s well-being, he should know that I was taking really good care of him. I didn’t do anything that he didn’t like or want.

But _why_ did I do that? Why was I so compelled to touch him?

I don’t have any excuse. There was no catnip in the room last night. And yes, the mating season is around the corner, but I can honestly say I felt no symptoms or loss of control. I just couldn’t help myself, I suppose, once I felt that small, compact body in my lap. That strange urge he has—to comfort—I can hear it in his song. I heard it yesterday afternoon while we were training. He wants to please me and he wants me to be happy. I was moved and I wanted him to feel good, too.

I guess that makes me a stupid cat, too. Well, I fit right in with the other two, I suppose.

It isn’t that I have no experience with sex. I do. I have indulged most seasons and occasionally out of season to reduce stress. It’s only healthy and natural. But this strange attraction I feel to the kitten is new. It must be because we are Sanga and Touga. I don’t remember ever wanting to make my partner feel good or really, even comfortable. I refrained from entering him last night—doing something else that wouldn’t be painful for him and still give us both pleasure. And in this case, extremely pleasurable.

For a kitten, that stupid cat really does know how to let loose in the bedroom. It’s a little disconcerting to see since he acts like a child for the rest of the day. He turns into some crazy sensual creature when you put him to bed. It doesn’t quite fit my view of him, but I don't dislike it. I wonder briefly if I have underestimated or misunderstood him. But that would just be stupid.

I know he only intended to comfort me. And I’m not sorry for touching him like that. But the Kiran has got to get over it. It’s the kitten’s decision, not his. And if I have anything to do with it, I’ll encourage his connection with me. It can only help deepen our bonds as Sanga and Touga, after all.

Finally, the conversation between the old man and the kitten stops, and the other two stupid cats make it outside. I start walking, sure that they will be able to keep pace with me. The streets are even more crowded than usual since it’s the second day of Antou. I can’t help noticing with some degree of amusement mixed with irritation at the kitten’s open-mouthed attention to the world around him. I roll my eyes and keep walking—and then I notice something is wrong.

I turn around and see the Kiran standing there, looking a little forlorn.

“Where’d he go?” The stupid cat is missing _again_!

“I… I lost him,” the Kiran admits.

“Stupid cat,” I mutter. “You’re _both_ stupid cats.”

He must have gotten pulled down an alley again. With his fur restored to its original color, he makes an even better target than when we first arrived. He looks adorable and cute, I have to admit. We retrace our steps and finally hear him shouting. He’s surrounded by four cats—but wait a minute. Those are _not_ cats. What the hell is going on here?! Those are...

“Wait a second. I don’t plan on letting you eat me!” Those are the words I hear from the kitten’s mouth. My hair stands on end and I bare my fangs.

I draw both my weapons and hurry down the alley, the Kiran a step behind me.

“The wishes of the prey don’t matter. This is a life or death issue for us!” A devil wearing fur and feathers exclaims. The kitten looks upset to be referred to as prey, thank the gods.

“Well, let’s not get so heated. First—” a devil dressed in black and green hair starts.

“Hey!” I approach at a run, making the first devil, the one in fur, flinch.

“Hey, hey—wait just a second. This cat and us—we were just talking—” he puts up both his hands, trying to stop my advance.

“Shut up,” I snarl. “Get away from him.”

“We haven’t done anything to him,” the devil with blue hair says calmly.

“Don’t care. It’s pointless,” I growl.

“Damn it, that’s why I hate cats,” the one closest to me replies. “Hey, pipsqueak.”

“It’s not pipsqueak. It’s Konoe.”

“You look like a pipsqueak to me,” he says. “But that’s not the point! Listen, I told you this just a little while ago. Telling lies is what your kind and humans do. But devils don’t tell lies. Never.”

“We are faithful to our desires. Even if it is something evil, we do what we please. Therefore, we cannot deceive you. This entire conversation was entirely true,” the green devil adds.

“You’re going to eat me?” Konoe asks, somewhat horrified.

“Eat?!” The Kiran finally speaks up, taking three steps closer to the devils.

“I was trying to tell you and was interrupted! I’d like it if you’d listen to the end,” the green-haired says, somewhat pompously, glancing in my direction.

“There’s no reason to listen. It’s pointless,” I repeat. I don’t disguise the open hostility in my tone. But this is the kitten’s call.

He hesitates for a moment. I worry he may not realize this could be another one of Leaks' traps. He looks up at me and I meet his gaze boldly without speaking. Then, a single word falls from his lips.

“Talk.”

After giving what looks like a mocking, theatrical bow—oddly reminiscent of that weird clown who travels with Leaks—the green-haired devil replies, “I’m honored to have your permission to continue. First of all, we can conclude that we too want to defeat Leaks. Of course, we need to regain the power he stole from us. So I have only one suggestion: if it’s not too much trouble, why don’t we join forces?”

My ears twitch. I’m immediately suspicious.

“What does that mean?”

“You are pursuing Leaks as well. We mean that we should cooperate for our mutual interests. It would be more efficient to combine our efforts and work together in a temporary truce,” the blue devil says. 

“Don’t joke around,” I growl. Cats and devils working together? It's unheard of!

“Currently, Leaks has stolen our power. In a sense, we are unarmed. If you were to fight us now, this would be your golden opportunity,” Razel says. I bristle at the insinuation that a Touga such as myself would take advantage of such an opportunity. “We will first defeat Leaks together and regain our powers. Our own quarrel will wait till afterward.”

“There is no proof that this isn’t a trap.” I point it out directly, in case the kitten hasn’t thought of this.

“Ahh, trap, evidence, what kind of crap is this? Then what do you plan to do?” The yellow devil asks angrily.

“Whoa there, calm down,” the green one says. Turning to me, he continues, “It’s good to be prudent. But doing it to extremes will prove counterproductive.”

“What are you trying to say?” I growl, offended. I’m _not_ being overly cautious. I’m simply being prudent.

“I’m saying that sometimes you’ll need the courage to jump into the flames,” the green-haired demon replies gleefully. “Well, let’s put aside our shame and show you some evidence.” The green devil snaps his fingers and points at the devil dressed in fur, who looks like he’d rather die.

“Huh? Hell no—why me? No— _you_ do it!”

“But I hate that,” the green-haired one whines. 

“Huh? Don’t be selfish. Then Kaltz or Razel should do it!” But when I glance at those two, Kaltz (with blue hair) turns away, and Razel (the one with flaming red hair) shakes his head sternly.

“And so...” the green-haired says triumphantly.

Clicking his lips, the yellow devil says, “Fine, I get it. I’ll do it.”

He puts a hand to his chest, and to my disbelief, his fingers sink in deeply, making a strange, squishing sound that makes my ears twitch and my fur stand on end. Slowly, he pulls a glowing orb out of his chest—a misshapen orb, glowing with an enchanting yellow light.

“What do you think this is?” The green devil’s voice interrupts the show. “Do you know?”

“This is the source of our power. Precisely, it is what gives us a concrete form. Each of us has one, and originally they were spheres,” Kaltz explains.

“They became distorted when your power was stolen?” Konoe asks.

“This should be proof enough of our current weakness, right?” The yellow devil says impatiently, obviously eager to replace his power source. He doesn’t wait for a reply, simply pushing the power source back into his chest, the same disgusting sounds coming from his body. The kitten looks strangely captivated and disgusted at the same time.

“With this, you've got to believe us,” the green devil says, addressing me. Somehow, he seems to think I am the one he has to convince. I suppose I am, in a way, since I am the one who asked for proof.

“Have it your way,” I huff gruffly. I still don’t trust them.

“Is this good enough for you, too?” The green devil asks the kitten directly.

“You won’t eat me till we’ve defeated Leaks, right?” He confirms.

The Kiran hasn’t said anything, but he looks even less pleased than I do.

“I’d like to avoid the primitive method of simply devouring you from head to toe,” the green devil says, but his tone says something different from his words. It sounds like he'd like that very much. “In addition, it’s unusual for devils to fight without their powers. After we’ve regained our powers, then we’ll duke it out for you.”

The kitten takes a deep breath, settling the fur on his ears and tail.

“I understand,” he says firmly, head lifted, ears straightened. Then he turns to glance at me, his expression hoping he hasn’t upset me. I convince myself that this is like that time with the shaman. He needs to decide for himself. I’ll go along with his decision.

“So then, it’s a deal. Until we destroy Leaks, we won’t eat you. We promise,” the green devil says, pleased and smiling broadly.

“What are your plans after this?” the kitten asks the devils. It’s a good question. It is Antou, so their outfits and appearance could pass as costumes. But still. I don’t think they ought to be roaming around Ransen.

“You kitties are staying at an inn, right?” Razel asks.

“Yeah,” Konoe admits, slightly hesitant. 

“I guess that’s where we’re going then,” the yellow devil says, smiling. He seems to have gotten over his embarrassment or discomfort from earlier remarkably quickly.

“To the inn?” The kitten echoes. He sounds horrified.

“We cannot afford to take our eyes off you,” Kaltz says, almost apologetically.

“It would be troublesome if you died before we got a chance to eat you. If you’re gone, that’s a problem,” the yellow devil says.

“Your appearance,” the kitten says. “You stand out too much.”

“Oy,” the yellow devil says. “You’re saying you want us to disguise ourselves as cats? Disgusting!”

“It’s Antou. We look like we are in costume and we will fit in inconspicuously,” Kaltz replies. I'm surprised that a devil knows what Antou is. Perhaps he used to be a cat. He is somehow a little different from the other three. And I cannot help noticing that he keeps glancing at Asato as though he recognizes him.

This is an entirely ridiculous situation. I find it hard to believe when the devils all follow behind the kitten. He starts walking, but he heads in the opposite direction from the inn.

“Oy. Do you not know your left from right? Stupid cat,” I murmur.

To my surprise, the kitten freezes in his tracks, his ears and tail drooping in shame. It’s an awfully cute mannerism—his embarrassment. Then, the rest of the party chimes in.

“What? He is directionally challenged? Even though he’s a cat?”

“Really—I’ve never heard of a directionally-challenged cat before.”

“I’ve never noticed Konoe isn’t able to find his way around.”

The kitten lowers his face to hide his blush. I realize how he’s been able to get lost twice now, as well as how lost he actually was when I first found him in the forest. It’s a miracle he made it as far as he did. 

“Rai,” he whispers. 

“What?”

“What should I tell Bardo?”

“This,” I say with a sigh, “this is _all_ on you. I did what I could. Bakaneko.” 

“But—would Bardo be all right with letting devils stay at his inn?” I hiss, almost desperate now since the inn is within view. “What if I don’t say anything and he finds out later?”

I shrug. I’m slightly intrigued by this situation and how the hell the old man is going to react. I know the old man has some experience with devils, after all.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asato confronts Konoe about whether he likes Rai or Asato more. Konoe doesn't feel the need to decide but gets swept up in the moment. 
> 
> There's mostly consensual, angsty sex in this chapter, especially for the fandom. That being said, I don't really believe that if sex happened like this IRL that I'd consider this to be anything but non-con. But this is what I write. So take it or leave it, I guess.

After discussing the situation with Bardo, I am able to get the four devils a room—and it seems their appearance really does come across as costumes to outside observers. However, since the inn is full, the four devils end up staying in Asato’s room. Rai is extremely displeased with the arrangement and pitches what I’d consider a fit—almost like his initial reaction to Bardo, in fact. He leaves in somewhat of a huff.

I hesitate to let him walk off when he’s mad, especially because of something that is my responsibility, but Asato touches my arm softly.

“Let him go. He is always angry. He’ll be fine once he cools down.”

I nod. Asato is right about him being fine later. But Rai _certainly_ wasn’t angry last night. That’s for sure. Part of me is a little disappointed. That probably won’t be happening again—not if Asato is in the room with us, too. It was incredibly enjoyable. It allowed me to see a part of the silver cat he doesn't show to the outside world. But now I wonder how we are going to deal with sleeping arrangements.

“Come on,” Asato says, pulling my arm. He leads me upstairs to our now-shared room.

I look out the open window, listening to and watching the noisy crowd of cats outside. I didn’t get a chance to see the rest of the festival and I feel a little disappointed as well as worried about Rai. Turning around to ask Asato if he’d like to check out the festival with me, I’m surprised to feel him slip his arms around my waist. He’s crept up behind me at the window and is nudging my cheek over my shoulder.

“Hey,” he whispers. “Do you like him more than you like me?”

I flatten my ears, confused at the question.

“No. I like you _both_ —the same.”

“I heard you last night.”

A small embarrassed sound escapes my lips at his admission. I am not sure how to respond.

“It sounded like you like him more than you like me.”

“He, um, had a nightmare. I was just trying to soothe him, and we got a little carried away.” It sounds like I am making an excuse.

“So would you comfort me if I had a nightmare?”

“Of course.”

“I had a nightmare last night, too,” Asato says softly, and I can hear the stubborn pout in his voice. I can’t suppress a smile.

“Of course you did,” I whisper as tenderly as I can.

“Will you… comfort me?”

He sits down on my bed—somehow knowing which one is mine—and pulls me into his arms. I’m facing him now, and I straddle his lap, reaching up to groom his ears gently. Soft, quiet sounds spill from his lips that are unbelievably sexy.

At first, I wasn’t sure what he had in mind, but there’s no question in my mind now what his intentions are. I’m game—but I am aware of and bothered by several things. There’s no catnip, and I’m a little nervous. Plus it’s still light outside. The window is open and we will have to keep the noise down.

“Just for a little while. I’m sure he will be back soon,” Asato says.

The idea of the silver cat walking in on us is _incredibly_ intimidating to me. Not because I don’t want to touch or be touched by Asato. Just… I want to touch Rai, too. I want them both and I don't want to hurt either of their feelings.

With those words and without giving me a chance to protest, Asato pulls my shirt off overhead and pushes me down on the mattress. I’m surprised by the sudden movement—his touch is much rougher and less experienced but also displays a lot less restraint and more emotion than Rai’s. I let out a soft gasp when my bare back hits the sheets. (I need to stop comparing the two cats!)

Before crawling next to me, Asato takes off his shirt as well. I love looking at his muscular chest. Compared to him—and Rai, too—I am slender and small. I always thought of myself as muscular and fit, but I must not be finished growing yet, or else my stature is just much smaller.

I run my fingers along his brown skin, tracing the muscles on his abdomen and his chest, and he leans down and kisses me roughly, his hands pawing at my apron and belt. He pulls off my shoes and strips my clothes from my body faster than I can process—and I start to get a little worried.

“Wait—just a minute,” I think to add, but I’m interrupted by another kiss.

Asato silences my protest with that kiss and then lets his mouth travel down my throat and chest, licking, nipping, and kissing me along the way. I am purring loudly and unrestrained, and I cover my mouth with my hand. I really don’t wish to be overheard—it’s still the middle of the day, and those devils could be right next door! In fact, I can hear them talking softly in the next room, their voices muffled through the wall and floating in more clearly through the open window.

Open window—there are a lot of cats out in the streets, too. I struggle just a little against Asato but give up when his lips kiss my hips and his tongue lick me from hilt to tip—sending a shiver through my core.

“Konoe…” He almost sounds mesmerized, but he keeps licking me.

I relax a little more—but each time I relax, more sounds spill from my mouth. It feels desperate and urgent—and only a little frightening. It almost feels like he wants to consume me—but that must be my imagination working overtime. It makes sense because of what I learned about the devils today and what they really want from me.

Asato lifts both my legs up over his shoulders, so he can put his hands under my ass. He cups me gently, bending me in half while sucking my cock. Sometimes his fangs graze my tender skin—but for the most part, it feels really nice—and I am approaching climax rapidly.

He seems to be able to tell, so he uses the opportunity to flip me over onto my stomach. Again, surprised by the sudden movement and slightly disoriented, I hear him murmuring.

“I want _all_ of Konoe.”

Then, I feel something warm and wet slipping between my cheeks—right below my tail. I protest loudly, but I don’t struggle. It’s a strange feeling—intrusive and almost uncomfortable—but Asato’s desperation makes me feel utterly indulgent. Slowly, I start to relax, trying hard not to think about exactly where Asato’s tongue is right now. After a little while, he changes the lick into more of a flicking movement, which sends little shivers up and down my spine and bristles my tail. My body seems to remember the pleasure I felt when Rai touched me there in the woods, and it is more than willing to participate.

“Asato…” I murmur softly into the sheets.

Two fingers push inside me—quite roughly at first. I cringe at the pain and protest again, but I try to stay relaxed. I want to feel Asato like this, too—and I feel bad about last night—that he heard me, that he heard Rai pleasuring me—and I want him to feel as loved as Rai. But this is still painful and a little scary. At least at first, anyway.

Because the mattress is muffling my voice, Asato probably either doesn’t realize or know that what he is doing is actually painful. I remember it was slightly painful when Rai entered me as well, but the catnip really eased things along. I feel slightly panicky when the pain doesn’t calm down.

“Mmm, Asato—wait—slow down…”

But he either doesn’t hear me nor wants to slow down, and there’s something a little terrifying in his eyes when I peek over my shoulder. He looks _hungry_. It sends a pleasant shiver down my shoulders, too—and I realize I want him, even if it _is_ going to be painful.

The moment I relax, Asato pulls his fingers out of me and moves again, pulling me up on all fours. I feel his cock pressing at my entrance—much harder and hotter than his fingers—and another bolt of terror floods me, for just a moment. I manage to relax, but he holds me in place firmly. Somehow his strength makes me feel a little more confident, though it still hurts when he pushes into my body.

My body feels like it’s being rent in two—and I cry out, lowering my face to the bed again, trying to silence myself. Asato, trying his best to soothe me, licks my shoulders, my neck and tries to take my lips as he continues to advance. My thighs are burning like I cannot even imagine, and tears spill down my cheeks.

“Konoe…”

His soft whisper enters my ear like a physical touch, and it soothes me. He isn’t _trying_ to hurt me. He’s trying to become one with me—longing for connection, longing for touch, asking and begging for my love and acceptance. While I am confused, I still want to soothe him and I do my best to relax.

His hands wrap around my hips and grasp my softened cock. It only takes a minute for my body to remember the pleasure he was giving me earlier with his mouth. Hearing his soft sighs of pleasure spill in my ear riles me up even faster.

“Konoe… you’re so soft inside. You feel so good…”

It’s almost embarrassing, but I don't dislike it and I manage to restrain my voice. Once he is all the way in, he rests for a moment, and I stay low on the bed, raised up on my knees, and breathe slowly and deeply into my arms.

“You grip me tighter when you breathe in,” Asato whispers.

I feel my ears blush hot, but I can’t suppress a little smile. I always have considered Asato to be a little child-like—as far as his speech and his behavior goes. I feel like I need to instruct him not to scratch the furniture in the house or the walls at the inn. But right now, he feels like an equal or even like someone with more experience than me. I’m still too reserved to discuss sexual connection as openly as he does.

“Are you all right?”

I nod, and without waiting for any other confirmation, Asato pulls out of me and pushes back in. I can’t tell how big of a movement he is making—but it’s painful. At first. I cry out in response—but I have to admit that my erection isn’t flagging and my cry doesn’t exactly sound pained. It sounds almost indecent. I’m ashamed I’m unable to quiet my voice—trying desperately not to think about who might be listening. But I really can’t help myself.

Asato starts to move a little faster, thrusting in and out, then up and back as well. He has a firm grip on my cock and starts to pump his hand in the same rhythm. It feels nice—a hot, wet, sticky purr rumbles in my throat. I find myself suddenly gasping for air—and I remember this happened during the catnip incident as well when Rai was inside me—when Asato thrusts in at a particular angle.

“Konoe!” Asato sounds pleased—he knows it feels good from my body’s reaction and the noise I am making. Plus, my cock gets even harder and I feel sweaty and desperate.

From there, it’s only a matter of time before I come completely undone. Pleasure is creeping up from the core of my body every time Asato thrusts against that place inside me. Then, his soft moans flood my ears, sending shivers down my shoulders. His caress feels so indulgent and nice that I let myself go.

My vision blanches white and my mind goes numb and blank and is suddenly overwhelmed with pleasure. I let out a loud moan as I spill my cum into Asato’s fist. I can feel my insides tighten up around him inside me, and he stutters and comes, too—spilling hot and wet inside me. It feels like such a relief to come—to have him come inside me, too—I collapse onto the bed and he falls on top of me, breathing roughly.

“Mmmm,” I hum softly, incapable of forming any words.

Asato is looking at my face, and he touches my forehead.

“Konoe—your face. It’s all relaxed now.”

I smile softly, hoping he won’t say anything else.

“That was nice,” I say, my voice soft.

“You nearly sang for me,” Asato replies, and I blush again.

“No, I didn’t,” I insist. I’m thirsty, and so I try to slip out of bed to grab a drink of water. But I overestimate my strength, my legs collapsing beneath my body. Asato is beside me in a flash, pulling me off the floor and putting me into bed, cuddling me close to him.

“Just rest,” he whispers.

I do as he suggests, closing my eyes and drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now. Wouldn't this be the perfect time for a certain silver cat to return from information gathering??


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you might expect, Rai walks in on Konoe, waking him up and insisting on further training.
> 
> Triggers: angst and embarrassment, game spoilers, drug-induced affection that turns to consensual oral sex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a challenge. Would Rai really act like this? I'm not so sure. But bear with me for the sake of the story.

“Oy.”

A low, smooth voice wakes me from my slumber. The moon of light is almost set and standing in front of my bed, arms crossed and eye sharp, is the silver cat. I rub my eyes sleepily, a little confused as to why he is looking at me like that. As the sleep wears off my body, I realize what Rai's problem is. I'm thankful that Asato is no longer in the room with me, but he has left me in a bit of a mess—naked and covered with his scent and thankfully, a blanket. My clothes are obviously scattered on the floor, and Rai leans down to pick up my shirt. He hands it to me, meeting my eyes boldly.

I reach out my hand to take it, unable to prevent the heat from climbing into the tips of my ears. My face feels flushed, too. And worse, Rai doesn’t release his grip on my shirt when I try to take it. His inaction makes me look at his face in confusion.

“Looks like you've been busy this afternoon.”

Immediately, I lower my gaze and shame courses through my body.

“Um…” I don’t know what to say, and I let go of my shirt, realizing _again_ that I am actually fully undressed. It’s _more_ than obvious what I’ve been up to and with whom.

Rai drops my shirt on the bed, and he walks around picking up my other items of clothing as though to point out that he knows I'm naked.

“Looks like you were in a bit of a rush.”

“…” I can’t bear to respond. His response indicates obvious jealousy, however, and I can’t help wondering a little about it. Just as the thought occurs to me, I look up at him as he turns around to pick up my pants from the floor. A strange scent floods my nose—bright and not quite floral, almost synthetic. It’s just a slight whiff, and it seems to be coming from Rai’s cape. I flatten my ears for a minute—it smells like _perfume_. These days, not many cats can afford a luxury like perfume. In fact, even I know the only ones who can work in the pleasure districts.

What the _hell_?

It doesn’t occur to me that my feelings of intense jealousy toward Rai—how and where and with whom he’s spending his time and money—are the same as how he is acting toward me, except that he has actually spent time with both me and Asato and I have _not_ spent time with whatever whore he’s seeing. Anger seethes uncomfortably beneath my skin, but I don’t say anything. To some degree, it might seem hypocritical if I mentioned it.

“What are you waiting for? Plan to sleep all day? Get dressed. We’re going to train.”

As usual, he orders me around, and I can’t help feeling resentful. But I don’t really have any reason to resist at this point, and I’m utterly curious about the perfume I smell on him. I want to find out exactly how he spent his day, especially since he feels like he can judge me.

I pull on my clothes awkwardly—and I notice he is watching me, so I make it quick and try to hide my body from him. When I lean down to lace my boots, I realize I’m incredibly sore where Asato entered me. Pain shoots through my lower half, and it’s bad enough to make me wince. I don’t remember this side effect after that time with the catnip, but I slept almost a full day afterward. So perhaps I just don’t remember or Asato was less careful.

Slinging my sword around my shoulder, I stand up. Rai has his eye glued on me, and I desperately try not to grimace at the pain in my body. He seems to expect this. Weirdly, instead of leading the way out of the room and down the stairs like he usually does, Rai waits for me.

“Go ahead.” He makes a small gesture with his hand toward the door.

Looking around once more, wondering where the hell Asato has gone but still thankful he has missed this interaction, I limp toward the door. I feel a gloved hand brush through the fur on my tail gently, and I hear a soft murmuring sound.

“Hmph.”

It sounds a little judgy to me, and I look over my shoulder at Rai again.

“Go on.” He doesn't sound angry or upset. At least, not with me.

“Okay.” I shrug and try my best not to limp down the hallway toward the stairs. Before I reach the stairs, the door next to ours open, and Verg pokes his head out. He gives me an awfully pointed look.

“Feeling well-rested?” He also has his arms crossed over his chest, eyebrows raised. “I wouldn’t have expected _that_ sort of thing from you and in the middle of the day. _Fascinating_.”

“Mind your own damn business,” Rai says, and he grips my shoulder gently, leading me toward the stairs. Again, I’m surprised at his response—considering my current state isn’t his doing. I’m flooded with more guilt because of his kindness.

I am gripping the banister to help steady myself—each step down is painful. Like in the hallway, Rai helps steady me, this time wrapping an arm around my waist. He sneaks past me and heads down the stairs ahead of me, walking slowly and assisting me one step at a time. But because he is next to me, he somehow makes this look casual rather than drawing attention toward my limp.

We walk past the deserted reception area and head down the street. He doesn’t let go of my arm until we reach the training area. He drops my arm and looks at me.

“Are you up for this today?”

“Oh, um, yeah. I’m fine.”

“You’re limping.”

“Am I?”

Rai narrows his eyes a little.

“Even if it _was_ just a few hours ago, I don’t think you should be that sore. He should have been more careful with your body.”

“I’m fine,” I insist. I am not sure I want to discuss this with him. Plus the scent of that perfume is still drifting very subtly. So instead, I ask quickly, “Were you able to find any good information?”

“Actually, yeah. I did have a lead.” Rai exhales deeply. He doesn't mention the perfume. “Look, maybe it’s not my place to say this—”

“Perhaps you _shouldn’t_ if you have any doubts,” I say, looking at my feet.

“You’re my _Sanga_. I don’t like to see you hurt. I just think you deserve better. There are alternatives to, um, that activity. As I know you well know.”

I don’t reply, but I’m feeling surprised by his interaction with me. He does seem jealous, especially since he's reminding me of our interaction last night—but he doesn’t seem judgmental toward me. This feels more like he is criticizing Asato for his treatment of me. It almost feels caring. And then Rai opens his mouth again.

“I can’t have my Sanga be this exhausted and sore because that idiot cat is too desperate to take his time.”

I glare up at him, and the corners of his lips are slightly curved up. I am very inexperienced sexually. All my knowledge is learned within the past three days.

“You’re sure you’re all right to train?”

I nod, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. I feel just a little confused, a little annoyed, and a lot shocked in response to this conversation. The fact that someone like him could be jealous of _anyone_ else is a little odd. I felt like this about Asato’s jealousy, too, but Asato is much more direct with his feelings than Rai. Rai is way harder for me to read.

My confusion doesn't interfere with my ability to sing, though. It doesn’t take much time at all for my song to bubble up to the surface of my skin, spilling out in a burst of light and power from my body. It’s a satisfying feeling—especially when I see Rai jolt in surprise at its power. He is pleased, it seems—and I _like_ that. I want him to be pleased with me. I want him proud of me and I want him to think I’m useful.

As I’m singing, I realize I also want this silver cat to think I’m _attractive_. I want him to find me more attractive than whoever he visited in the pleasure quarter. To my surprise, my desire gets converted into my song, and he sends me a rather obvious look when he notices the shift. I’m flustered—enough so that the electric connection between us is severed suddenly with a soft pop.

I’m exhausted—and I feel power draining from my body—and I feel myself falling toward the earth. Rai catches me in an instant before I can land in the grass. And this time, instead of feeling flustered and confused by his touch, it makes my heart ache. As I lie in his arms, I suddenly feel the rough texture of his tongue in my ear, caressing the downy white fur deep inside. It soothes and settles me, and it sends shiver after shiver down my back—and blood is pooling in my hips.

Whether it’s because I can’t move or because his hold on me is so powerful, I can’t tell what I like best. He feels strangely _safe_ to me. If I think about it, about when I first met him, he felt the need to test my strength. I remember with a little shame that I managed to injure him with my sword—of course, he got me, too. So why on earth should he feel safe? But his body is warm and strong. It should feel intimidating to me, but it doesn't.

I realize almost right away that he is marking me with his tongue as if he is trying to replace Asato’s scent on my ears. Even if I twitch my ears or duck my head as soon as I have the power to move, he holds me in place and grooms me. He’s making soft sounds—sighs and heavy breaths mixed with a purr.

“Let’s get you something to eat. You must be hungry. We can practice sword training another time.” He stands up and pulls me to my feet. “You sounded different today.”

“My song?” I ask.

“Yeah. It was more powerful. And…”

I wait for him to continue but he doesn’t right away. I look up at him to urge him to continue.

“It seemed like you were trying to tell me something.” Rai looks away—an unusual mannerism for him. But he starts walking—shortening the length of his steps, I notice, waiting for me to catch up with him.

Rai leads me out to the festival and I follow him a little more closely. He keeps glancing over his shoulder as if to keep track of me, too. I’m close enough to touch his white tail. I wonder if he purposely flicks it like a signal for me to follow. Whenever I see it twitch, I have the strange urge to pounce on it. But I restrain myself. I can't imagine how he'd react if I succumbed to this instinct. I smile just thinking about it.

I follow him to a food booth, and he purchases several pieces of roasted chicken on sticks. It’s delicious. I polish it off quickly. And then I notice a disturbance off at the edge of the festival. There are two cats harassing the owner of a stand, telling him he shouldn’t miss a few of his wares, that he’s ruining their experience of the festival—and irritation surges through my body. I feel like I have to interfere the moment one of the cats pushes the owner onto the ground, knocking his wares off the table.

Before I can move, I see a flash of silver from the corner of my eye, and Rai has leapt from behind me, quickly disarming both bandit cats. He has a calm aura about him—but when I take a closer look at his face, he looks disgusted and a little disappointed that the job was so easy.

One of the bandits on the ground picks up his sword, and I’m afraid Rai doesn’t see it.

“Look out!” I shout.

“Die!” The bandit cat yells as he hurls his sword at Rai.

Because he's so close, Rai barely manages to deflect the blade, but the hilt of the sword brushes his eyepatch. I watch as he, almost in slow motion, brings his hand up to his face and turns to look at the bandit who just threw the sword. His body makes a weird, ungraceful lurch, and suddenly he is in front of the bandit, sword drawn.

He’s acting really weird—and to my horror, he brings his sword down onto the cat’s hand, pinning it to the ground and purposely spilling blood. It looks like he’s torturing that cat.

Now, I’ve noticed that Rai sometimes gets a little bit of a creepy smile when he fights—but this is brutal and senseless violence. He isn’t the kind of cat who would normally be provoked by something like this. And I’m horrified when I see him pull the blade up and stab the bandit cat again as if enjoying his screams.

While the cats around us were relieved when Rai first intervened, I hear the crowd switch to murmurs of disgust and fear.

“Hey! That’s enough!” I yell, and I approach. He’s my Touga. I’m responsible for his actions as part of this pairing. I have to stop him. “Hey!”

I don’t know what else to do since he is ignoring me, so I wrap my arms around his back and try to pin his arms. He is in the midst of raising up his sword again with the purpose of spilling even more blood. The hilt of his sword hits the back of my head, and it _hurts_. I’m stunned, and I let go of his body for a moment—but my actions have served their purpose. He slowly turns toward me.

I’m shocked by his expression. There's a thin smile on his face, showing off his fangs and most disturbingly, his eye looks dark and lifeless, like a glass bead. To my surprise, he reaches into my hair and brings his hand up in front of me. It’s covered in blood. In _my_ blood.

“Such a pretty color,” he says—and his voice is _not_ his calm, neutral, dignified tone. It sends a shiver down my spine—like there is another creature living inside him.

Still stunned, I watch as he brings his fingers to his lips, making a show of licking the blood from them. He hums softly like a cat might do if he was tasting something delicious. It’s _frightening_ —and the look in that lifeless eye is _hungry_ for more of my blood.

“Snap out of it! Get a hold of yourself!” I shout, and not knowing what else to do, I slap his face as hard as I can.

When the palm of my hand hits his cheek, he blinks in surprise—and suddenly, the light returns to the pale blue iris. I tighten up my body, almost expecting he will hit me back, but he doesn’t. When I peer up at him, at first I think he’s furious. But on closer inspection, he looks bewildered. I’ve never seen him with that expression before.

I relax a little when I realize he isn’t going to hit me back, letting out my breath.

“Let’s go back to the inn,” I say with more determination than I actually feel. I’m confused and I want to know what just happened, but I have no idea how to start the conversation. That smell of perfume from earlier is nowhere in my mind.

As we start walking, I hear him murmur softly.

“I’m sorry.”

I turn to face him—amazed that someone like him would apologize for _anything_. He meets my eye briefly, and we walk in silence back toward Bardo’s inn.

We are stopped by a line of about a dozen cats walking in a single file and blocking the street. They are wearing outrageous costumes—some even more outlandish than Verg’s or Froud’s, I think. We wait for them to pass and as we wait, a comforting smell sinks into my nose. It makes my fur bristle.

“What is that smell?” I ask, a little mesmerized.

“It’s probably that,” Rai indicates a booth across the street. The seller is arranging pouches of incense on his table. He looks up when he notices my interest.

I can’t resist. I walk over to the table and look with yearning at those small pouches. They smell _so_ nice—comforting and warm and lovely—and I haven’t bought myself any trinkets during the festival so far. I think I can justify a small splurge. As I pull out my coin purse, Rai puts his hand on my shoulder.

"Don’t. You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into at a shop that does business at this hour. You don't know what's mixed in there.”

The owner looks downright offended. I’m actually a little surprised at Rai’s direct comment, but I’m relieved because it sounds like him. He is back to normal. But I’m unable to resist the temptation and I hand the merchant a coin in exchange for one of the bags of incense.

“Thank you for your business,” he says, nodding his head and giving Rai a dirty look. Rai sighs heavily.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen.” It sounds like a resigned rebuke.

“But it smells good. See?” I hold out the pouch for him to smell.

“Stop.” His response of ducking away from the pouch is oddly childish, and I find it terribly cute. But I tuck the pouch into my pocket after pulling the strings closed. The scent still escapes subtly—smelling pleasant and making me feel relaxed. I take a deep breath in to enjoy it.

We get back to walking toward the inn and we come to a fork in the road. I look longingly out into the forest where the path continues. Rai is already on the left. I'm not quite ready to go back to the inn, I think.

“Let’s keep going straight,” I suggest.

“Straight? But the inn is to the left.” He stops walking and looks at me. He looks a little concerned.

“Since we’re already out, we might as well enjoy the view.” I feel nice and pleasant, a soft thrum in my body that makes me purr. I was really tired earlier—from training and singing and then the stress at that merchant’s booth, but I’m in a good mood now.

“Are you all right?” Rai asks, following me as I head toward the woods.

“Yeah. Why? Do you have plans or something?”

Rai sighs again. He is certainly back to his usual self, but he doesn’t rebuke me for heading off to the forest.

“It’s a roundabout way to go, but if we keep on this path, eventually we will end up back at the inn.”

“Let’s walk along the river,” I suggest, perking up my ears when I hear the sound of water and smell it. It smells nice, mixing with the incense.

“Do you like water?” I ask, checking out the slowly flowing water. The sound tickles deep in my ears and feels pleasant.

“Not especially,” Rai responds. “Since you hate fire, do you like water?”

“Not really,” I say. I _really_ must be in a good mood since normally bringing up the topic of my fear of fire is nothing if not aggravating.

I’m enjoying the nice evening air, taking another deep breath. Suddenly, my heart starts to beat loudly in my ears and my body is instantly coated in a fine layer of sweat. I feel both hot and chilled at the same time and my fur bristles. It’s a weird feeling, not quite like a fever.

“… By any chance, are you too…?” I ask. Rai looks a little strange, his fur bristled and his eye gazing directly at me. “Maybe we caught a cold…” I lift my hand up to check the temperature between my ears.

Rai lets out an exasperated sigh—one I’m used to hearing at this point, but I’m surprised to hear it now.

“You _really_ are a stupid cat. On top of that, _idiotic_. Can’t you hear that?”

His tone irritates me—as arrogant and self-righteous as it sounds. But I bite back any rude comments and prick up my ears. That’s when I notice a sound in the grass not far from us. A rustling sound—like animals in the grass. And I hear a voice—maybe a moan. Wait—a moan?!

Suddenly I realize what the sound is. I think there are cats over there—on top of each other. Probably… _doing_ things. Heat floods my face and I am terribly embarrassed to have walked in on something like this.

“That incense. The smell of it is hanging over us.”

“Why does it smell like that?” It really does smell different than what I bought at the stand.

“Those cats have some too. There’s probably some low-quality catnip mixed in it.”

“But it doesn’t smell like what they were burning at the stall at all.” I’m _sure_ it smells different. But I can’t tell if the smell is coming from me or from around me in the grass. It's unnerving.

“That was probably to lure in customers. Most cats aren’t able to tell the difference in quality. That’s what happens to cats who are fooled. Though, there are also cats who can tell and buy it specifically for that purpose.”

I look up at Rai’s pointed words. He sounds a little disgusted, and his tone is accusing. Of course, this is my first time experiencing Antou, and I had no idea that there was catnip in the incense at all. It was _not_ my intention!

My ears and tail droop in shame, and I can’t help notice when two cats pass us a little ways away. They are headed back toward the city, but I wonder now exactly what they were doing out here in the woods. I know from experience the effect catnip has on a cat’s sex drive. It happened to me right after I confronted the devils and it led to…

Suddenly Rai’s presence is right in front of me.

“What?!” I’m slightly intimidated since I didn’t hear him approach. He made no sound in the grass at all.

“Be quiet,” his low voice rumbles—and I’m sure I hear a purr underneath it. Still, I don’t want him to think that I _lured_ him out here to take advantage and I’m flustered and ashamed. He grabs my shoulder without hesitation and pulls me into a tight embrace. His body is _hot_.

“Wait, just wait, let go!” I protest strongly, still confused and worried about how he is interpreting all this.

“I thought I told you to be quiet.” The words are whispered directly into my ear, which he proceeds to lick. This is _not_ grooming. This is a deliberate and wet lick. His tongue squishes into my ear, making a loud vulgar sound—and to my shock, blood pools in my waist immediately.

I can’t suppress a soft sigh and a moan. The touch feels really good if a little ticklish. I shake my head for a minute to try to get my thoughts working again. Is this really okay?

The moment I am hesitating, Rai pulls me into the thicket and my body is dragged down into the grass. I’m pushed up against a tree.

“Seriously—just wait a minute—what are you doing?!” Words spill from my mouth without my permission, and I know my resistance isn't expressing my honest feelings.

He _doesn’t_ wait, continuing to lick up my ear and pull the tip into his mouth. It makes me gasp and rude noises start leaking from my mouth. It feels amazing—and so tempting. But we are outside! Someone could see us! Or hear me! And I didn’t do any of this on purpose! Is this really all right?

“What comes next is _your_ doing.”

The whisper sends another bolt of lust into my body and considering what I’ve already done earlier this afternoon _and_ last night, I cannot believe its power.

“Why?”

The sound of Rai’s breath is ragged and elevated. I don’t think he gets this worked up even during sword training. It’s really hot and more than sexy!

“ _Damn_ it,” he swears softly, just before nipping the tip of my ear. It makes me jerk but even the pain feels good—it’s incredibly sexy. Still, I’m worried. I try to push him away, but he easily pins my arms overhead to the trunk of the tree while he continues licking up my ears. A surprisingly sexy sound slips out of my lips, and my face flushes in embarrassment. But I don’t tell him to stop.

“I told you not to buy it,” Rai murmurs, pulling away for a moment and meeting my gaze. His eye is sparkling and shimmering with something that looks like passion, so different from the glazed glass-bead look from earlier.

“Why? You knew this would happen?”

“It’s not that. I just said not to get involved with things that don’t concern you and that you know nothing about.”

My ears lower shamefully.

“It’s too late now, isn’t it?”

“That’s why you need to take _responsibility_.”

With those words, he presses his lips to mine. I always forget how soft and plush his lips are—they feel amazing. I relax my jaw, returning the kiss and letting his tongue slip into my mouth. Another flash of heat shoots through my body as his tongue tangles with mine. I can no longer suppress the obvious delight my body is feeling and my voice spills desperately. I _try_ to be quiet, afraid other cats might hear me… but then, other cats might hear me—they might see a cat that looks like Rai doing this to me. There’s something oddly attractive about that.

Breathing deeply, I return his kisses and eventually, he releases my wrists from the trunk of the tree. He knows I’m not resisting him anymore and he lets me run my claws through his hair and the soft fur on his ears. His body feels tense and powerful—and his kiss feels experienced and nice.

He kissed me last night, but this feels more natural—like we belong like this. And he is starting to relax a little bit more as the minutes pass. His hands slip underneath my shirt, skating up my belly and toying gently with my nipples. It sends another wave of pleasure through me and I gasp into his mouth. His right hand is busy working off my apron and undoing my belt. I don't resist at all.

My body feels weirdly hot—just like it did in that field of catnip. Sweat prickles my skin and I notice I can smell better. Rai smells different than the scent surrounding us—his is a comforting, powerful scent. It makes me feel nice—almost in the same way as the incense does.

Instead of just using his hands, Rai moves away from my body a little and lowers his head to my stomach. It curves in response to the ticklish touch when I feel his nose and lips brush my navel. He combs his tongue through the soft fur, cupping my erection with both hands. I cover my mouth with my arm. My claws draw reflexively and I work hard not to scratch him.

A loud breathless gasp makes me flush when I feel him lick the tip of my erection. It’s such an indulgent sensation—gentle and warm—and utterly sexy. My body feels like it might be melting when he swallows my cock and lets his hands travel toward the back of hips, caressing my tail. It feels like I’m being immersed in Rai—and for a brief moment, I wonder if he feels like this when he’s inside me.

However, I am completely distracted by his touch and my rational thoughts melt away. It doesn’t occur to me anymore that I’m being awfully vocal and we are out in public—in the woods—and I could easily be overheard. The touch is too indulgent and wonderful. I just want to feel _more_. My body relaxes into the touch—no, more like melts into it—and I can’t help myself.

Rai reaches up to the hand covering my mouth and looks up at me, pulling my dick out of his mouth. And seeing him—lying in between my legs with my cock in his mouth—it’s a powerful sight. I’ve heard of this sort of thing before, but it’s not at all what I expected. I always thought the person on the receiving end was the one in the power position. But that’s not what this feels like at all. I feel _completely_ taken.

“Don’t hold back your voice. I want to hear you.”

I’m a little surprised at his words—they are direct as always—and they make me feel so good. I smile softly and watch as he licks the tip of my dick, pressing his tongue into the slit. That touch makes my eyes flutter closed and pushes a gasp out of my lungs, but he is still watching my reaction. One of his hands disappears from my tail and I hear the sound of a buckle. I also notice he has moved his legs off of mine, and I think he’s actually stroking himself in the same rhythm he’s using to suck my cock. It’s amazingly hot—that I could affect a cat like him in this way—and I’m overwhelmed quickly.

The hand toying with my tail scoots all the way down to the very base, and his fingertips brush over my still-tender entrance softly. But that gentle touch makes me jerk my hips up—as if my body knows the pleasure that awaits me there. He doesn’t push inside me but teases me gently, making me shiver and get even harder.

His purr is vibrating against my cock in his throat and when he hums, something weird happens. My chest, which has been feeling constricted and heavy, suddenly loosens and a song spills out from my body. To my embarrassment, light spills out from me as well—brightening the space between us and the woods around us. My ears suddenly clear incredibly—letting me hear the pounding of his heart, his ragged breath, the wet sounds from his mouth and his hand, the water in the river behind us—and I don’t have time to worry about being so suddenly exposed to anyone happening to pass by.

His body gives a little jolt as well when the song spills out, and he glances up at me indulgently—his face softens—and he strengthens the suction and rounds his lips, bobbing his head up and down subtly. I can’t begin to describe the feeling of his lips against my cock or the gentle brush of his nose against the soft fur underneath my navel when he sucks me into his mouth entirely.

It’s only a matter of minutes before I can no longer control myself, and I relax and close my eyes, a deep shudder coursing through my body. My climax is wonderfully intense, and I realize I have raised my voice quite loud when my throat feels dry and sore.

I think I feel his climax, too—his body jerks and he purrs softly, letting my cock slip from his lips. He swallows my cum—and I’m not sure how I feel about that. But at the moment, it’s incredibly sexy.

Exhaustion and relaxation and a deep feeling of peace flood my body after the intense pleasure, and I am still trying to catch my breath as though I just sprinted a mile. I relax against the trunk of the tree and Rai is watching me, a soft gentle smile on his face. He looks so much younger.

For just a split second, an image of his creepy smile from when he was fighting the bandit cat flashes in my mind. I push it away and replace it with this version of him.

I guess I don’t have to worry about sharing a room with Asato. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. I don’t want to choose between them and it seems I don’t have to. A quiet giggle slips out of my mouth.

“What?” His voice is soft and relaxed, and he peers up at me.

“Oh, um, nothing. I was just thinking I don’t need to be so worried about sharing our room with Asato now.”

Rai smiles a little—almost a strained smile, I notice.

“You’ll sleep in my bed tonight,” he states—just like his usual self of telling me exactly how things are going to be. It doesn’t irritate me right now. I’m too relaxed and am feeling spoiled. I’ll oblige. “Come on. Let’s go back.”

He helps me to my feet, and my legs are unsteady and shaky. Exhaustion covers me, and he lends me his arm and soon his shoulder on the quiet walk back to the inn. He pushes open the door and ushers me inside. Verg and Razel are sitting on the couch in the reception area, and Bardo is actually manning the desk for a change. All three look up at me, glancing between me and Rai suspiciously.

“Rough night training?” Bardo asks, but his tone indicates he knows _exactly_ what we’ve been up to.

“Wow, the kitten certainly has impressive stamina,” Verg comments. I don’t miss his leer.

“Shut up,” Rai says curtly, leading me toward the stairs. He lifts me up, carrying me upstairs over his shoulder.

“Yeah, I’d get him out of here quickly, too, if I were you,” Verg adds.

I feel myself blushing in embarrassment, but Rai doesn’t respond. We head up to the room, open the door and find Asato sitting on my bed—now _his_ bed.

“What happened?!” Asato asks urgently when Rai plops me down on his bed heavily. Rai ignores him, removing my gear and my boots and cape. “What did you _do_ to him?! Did you hurt him?”

Rai glares at Asato, stopping his hands for a moment.

“We trained. And _no_. _I_ didn’t hurt him.”

Asato purses his lips and growls.

“I’m fine,” I interrupt. This is messing up my current relaxed mood and pleasant afterglow, and I don’t want their fighting to ruin a perfectly good night’s sleep.

“If I _ever_ find out you’ve hurt him again—because _you_ couldn’t be bothered to take the steps to ensure he doesn’t suffer—I’ll kill you,” Rai growls at Asato. His tone makes my fur bristle.

“I didn’t leave him like this! He can’t even move!”

“He’s been _singing_. It’s exhausting.”

“Get away from him,” Asato insists, getting up from the bed and pulling himself to his full height. “I don’t want him sleeping with you.”

“It’s not your decision,” Rai says neutrally—aggravating Asato even further.

“Just _stop_ it,” I say, my voice exhausted. “I want to sleep.”

“You want to sleep with him?” Asato sounds heartbroken.

“Asato…” I feel bad. I don’t mean to hurt his feelings. But I know if I climb into bed with Asato, he’s _not_ going to let me sleep, and I'm afraid of what he might do to me in front of Rai.

“Let him sleep,” Rai says. He takes off his gear and his boots. I notice he tucks the dagger under the mattress well within his reach. Ridiculous! “Don’t even look at him.”

“Shut up. I’ll kill you.”

That’s their last interaction of the night. I settle down right away when Rai pulls me against his chest. My body is soft and melts against his warmth. He casually grooms my ears a little, just enough so I can drift off to sleep—immersed in his scent and also able to smell Asato as he grooms himself.


End file.
